He was born November 13, 1927 at home in Montgomery County to the late Albert and Mary (Fox) Oaks. Ernie was raised on a farm and graduated from Butler High School in Vandalia, Ohio. He served in the US Army and attended The Ohio State University where he received his Bachelor of Science Degree in civil engineering. As a professional engineer, he worked for the State of Ohio Department of Natural Resources, spent two years on the Panama Canal, and worked at the engineering firm of Clyde E. Williams and Associates. Later he formed Oaks Engineering Consultants.

Ernie was a lifelong Christian man who will be remembered for his kind smile and joyful sense of humor. He was God’s blessing to us all.

We are so sorry for your loss. We were so glad that we could spend some time with him before we came to Florida. It was a very nice visit and we enjoyed his sense of humor and his smile
Ron and Shirley Brewer

Donna, I read this and thought how wonderful it is that Ernie had such a wonderfully long life and that you were a part of it. You still hold a special place in my heart and I wanted to send my condolences to you and your family and to let you know I am thinking about you.

My Heart is saddened by your loss of this great man.Ernie was an inspiration to all that met him. Know that our thoughts and prayers are filled with sadness, and yet joy, as He wings his way to Heaven! While he will be dearly missed, know that he will be waiting for you all on the other side..Love to all of you

Please know I am thinking of you during this time of loss. I have so many fond memories of Ernie when I was growing up. In many ways, he was like a father to me, someone I trusted, admired, and looked up to. He was kind, funny, warm, and so very tolerant when a group of us would fill the house. He will be missed.

Sorry for your loss. So grateful Ernie and Vicky were apart of my life and for them taking me in my Sr year of high school to allow me to finish at Tree of Life. Ernie will be missed. Vicky, you are in our thoughts and prayers and will always be considered family. Love you!

Wayne, Karen & Reagan,
We are all very sorry to see Ernie pass away but he had a long and fruitful life. A contribution to Alzheimer Assn. in Ernie’s memory has been made. Hopefully that meets with all of your approvals rather than flowers which are so short lived. Maybe sometime down the road a cure/prevention can be found for Alzheimer disease as it is a terrible disease.
Dan & Sara Murphy & some of the Murphy klan.

I am sad for all of you that Ernie has made his journey to the other side of life. I know you will all miss him so much. But for Ernie, he has entered the life after death he has been waiting for and I know he was received with great joy by a host of angels!

Ernie was a huge piece of stability in my childhood and beyond. He was kind and funny and let me stay for dinner more often than I ate at home I think! I remember his garden behind the garage on Karl Road and the strawberries he grew there and best of all the ice cream he made with them. I can still see him in my minds eye coming into our house on Karl Road in the 1950’s to pick up Dad and head down to Ohio State for the football games.

He moved Terry and I into our first home and hung our wallpaper! We played cards and laughed a lot. He was Zachary’s God Father and gave him books!

We loved Ernie very much and will always remember his laughter, kindness and ability to give of himself to all who needed him. Such a wonderful person.
With great love,
Christina, Terry and Zachary Shields